Cataclysm

Chapter Nine

-'Death'-

Sasuke kicked aside the dead body of a girl in disgust. As much as he hated humans, he hated the way they smelled even more. And right now, he was walking around a city that reeked of human death and vomit. The entire city had finally burned to the ground completely, all that being left was charred buildings that had for the most part caved in on themselves. Honestly, could they just die without having some god-awful stench? It would make his life a lot more pleasant.

"Did you find her yet?" Naruto asked, tiptoeing around the bodies, along with Hinata, who seemed incredibly saddened by the sight.

"No. I told you if I found her I would let you know. Idiot." The demon said, glaring over at the blonde. Not only was he being forced out of duty to look for the redhead and his mate, but he had run into the other two fake gods, whose names were apparently Naruto and Hinata. They knew by now that he was a demon, as he had told them, and they also knew that Gaara was the dragon, the quiet woman being able to figure it out and piece it all together. Really, angels were a lot smarter than he gave them credit for. Well, all except the blonde man, he was just a big idiot.

He wasn't worried about them, for he knew nothing could kill his friend save the sword that he had been in possession of since long ago. And without a doubt Gaara had found Sakura, and so she was probably alive and well too.

They all stopped, seeing a cloud of ash begin to pick up. Suddenly, debris flew out in all directions, and Sasuke moved out of the target range quickly. The red dragon, for the first time truly being seen in the morning light, shook the dust from its scales and stretched its wings. Sakura rose from her spot on the ground and twisted experimentally, smiling at the fact that her wounds had healed, the skin once against smooth, as could be seen through the cuts in her clothing.

"See? There she is." Sasuke said, beginning to walk over to them. Naruto smiled brightly and began to run towards them, though it looked like he was hopping, since he was trying not to step in any of the puddles of fluids or on any deceased humans. Rolling his eyes, Sasuke waited until the blonde was next to him and pushed him over, causing him to land in a heap of dead bodies.

"Oh come on!" he whined, a squeamish look coming to his face. Hinata picked up her pace and moved to help him out.

The red dragon seemed to decrease in size until it twisted down into the form they had all come to see as his human. Sasuke stopped in front of him and offered him the cloak he always wore. Grateful for the clothing, he took it and wrapped it around himself and secured it around his neck. "Nice to see you made it out alive my friend." He snickered.

"Please." The dark haired man scoffed. "Like your little light show could kill me." He said, the corner of his mouth lifting a bit in a smile.

"Of course, of course. How foolish of me to think otherwise." The redhead bowed, feigning sincerity.

By now Naruto had lifted himself from all the corpses, no thanks to Hinata, and ran towards his pink haired friend, scooping her up in a hug. "Sakura! I am so happy to see you're alright!" he declared, setting the laughing pink haired woman back down.

"Thank you Naruto." She said with a smile.

His gaze landed on the extra sword at her waist and went wide eyed. "Sakura, is that?" he asked, pointing to it.

"The Sword of Tears." Hinata supplied softly, stopping when she was next to her friends.

He looked back up at her, and then to the redhead. "But, if you had it, then why didn't you kill him?" he asked in confusion.

Sakura blushed and looked slightly ashamed, since now she would have to tell them the truth, and a small part of her feared their reactions. "Because I don't want to." She said softly.

"Because she's my lover and my mate." Gaara said simply, pulling Sakura against him and tilting her chin up with his index finger, planting a passionate kiss on her mouth. "And I was the one who gave it to her. You think I would allow the only weapon that could kill me to just lie out in the world? It's been with me for thousands of years."

"Oh." The blonde said, blinking. Then everything that was said dawned on him. "Wait a minute! Sakura, why didn't you tell me you mated the dragon? I thought we were best friends!" he said, looking hurt.

Sakura let out a sigh and wrapped her arms around Gaara's waist, glad to finally show her affection for her mate to others. "We are friends Naruto, but if I had told you, you would have freaked out and jumped to conclusions."

"And you're stupid." Sasuke pointed out, causing Naruto to glare at him.

"I am not!" he pouted, crossing his arms.

Hinata spoke up then. "So, are you saying that you are happy Sakura?" she asked.

"Yes." The pink haired angel replied, snuggling closer to her redhead. "I wish to stay with him forever. I love him." She declared, smiling up at him.

"Which brings me to my next point." Gaara began, keeping on arm around Sakura's waist. He gripped onto the Sword of Tears and pulled it from Sakura's side, offering it to Sasuke. "You are the only other person I trust with this. I'm tired of havoc…so I want you to spread the word that I am dead."

"Again?" Sasuke sighed.

"Yes again, the first time was for the angels. But this time it's for the underworld. I don't want anyone coming after me…especially since there will be a cross breed between light and darkness for the first time." Gaara said seriously, keeping his gaze focused on his friend.

"You know, if it weren't for all the horrible things we've done together, I would hate being your friend." Sasuke said, taking the sword from Gaara and tying it to his waist. "Rest assured that I will tell the right people so that the knowledge spreads quickly."

Gaara smirked, "Thanks." Then he looked back down at Sakura, wondering what she planned to do. "If they don't think you are dead, they will continue to search for you. It's how you beings are, so persistent." He teased.

She blushed, and then looked over to her two friends. Stepping out of her mates grasp, she allowed her wings to appear. Then she grasped one and brought it forward. Grimacing slightly, she pulled a small handful of the clean white feathers from her right wing, shaking it out slightly and letting them disappear once more. "Take these to Neji." She said, handing the feathers over to Hinata. "And please tell him that I died in the battle against the last dragon." She instructed.

"Y-you want me to lie to my cousin?" Hinata asked, slightly mortified.

Naruto walked forward and put his arm around the ebony haired angel, causing her face to turn a deep crimson. "Oh come on Hinata, it's for a dear friend's happiness. Surely you can lie once in your lifetime." He said. Thinking about his words, Hinata nodded and brought the feathers closer to her.

"I will." She promised.

Sakura smiled. "Great. You have no idea how much it means to me."

"Well then," the redhead sighed, offering his hand out to Sakura. When she took it he pulled her off, walking towards the mountains behind Troy. "I guess we'll see you guys eventually." He waved, but it was really only towards Sasuke.

"Don't worry, I'll keep you filled in on the major news in the underworld." The ebony haired man said.

"And we can tell you about what's going on in Heaven every few hundred years or so!" Naruto declared.

"Thanks." Sakura said with a smile before waving goodbye to them. She watched as they returned her wave, except for Sasuke, who just turned and began to walk in the opposite direction. Facing forward with Gaara, she looked up at him inquisitively. "So, where are we going?" she asked him.

"Who knows, the world is continuously changing. I prefer the country, but you never know, we may end up in a big city one of these days." He laughed.

She laughed as well, laying her head against his shoulder. "Well, wherever we go, it needs to have a large bed, with enough light so that I can see at night." She said with a nod. "Since now I don't have to wear that infernal blindfold."

Gaara snickered, kissing the top of her head before detaching himself from her side. "Yes well, we'll see about that!" he ran forward then, leaving her behind.

"Hey! Come back here!" she called as she ran after him, unable to hold in her laughter. Although their relationship hadn't started in the most conventional way, it appeared that the rest of her life was going to be a happy one, and Sakura couldn't wait to start it.